Ace of Spades HQ - Yesterday I was convinced the cause had to be mechanical. It was inconceivable to me that an Airline Transport Pilot could manage an approach that badly. Alas.... While stopping short of pinpointing pilot error as the likely cause of the...

The Lone Ranger may be an iconic figure of American TV heroism, but the film version hitting theaters this weekend has been nearly universally reviled.

Nationally syndicated talk show host and sometimes WND contributor Steve Deace, for example, blasted the film on his Facebook page.

“As bad as the film-making is, it’s the story itself that is really offensive,” Deace writes. “It’s as if the people that wrote the script despised the character they were portraying. They took all the altruism, heroism and iconic status of the character and made him a whiny and petulant fool.”

He continues, “All the Christians in the film are treated spitefully. They’re either hypocrites, idiots or corrupt. . I came away surprised Disney put their name on this. It’s like the film-makers set out to sabotage an iconic character on purpose.”

Even the clearly not Christian movie-review site RottenTomatoes.com gave “The Lone Ranger” a dismal 25-percent (out of 100) rating, criticizing its “bland script, bloated length and blaring action overkill.”

It’s no surprise, then, that many moviegoers have turned instead to “Despicable Me 2,” the sequel to 2010′s funny, charming and award-winning animated film “Despicable Me.”

The first film in the series introduced America to Gru, a contemptible villain whose heart was softened by three orphan girls. The redemptive tale is much beloved, not only for its heartwarming messages, but for the uproariously funny “minions,” Gru’s not-quite human helpers.

“Despicable Me 2″ brings back the minions with a vengeance, as they steal the show and flood nearly every scene. The filmmakers’ clearly know a solid marketing strategy when they see one.

The sequel, however, falls far short of its predecessor.

Oh, the laughs are there. The minions are just flat-out funny. And even after the film’s trailers thoroughly spoiled the first 10 minutes of the film, there are still enough minion hijinks left over, particularly at the very end of the film, to send audiences out of the theater on a high note with smiles on their faces and laughs to share.

The storyline, however, is thin, there primarily as a vehicle to get more minion jokes in. When the plot takes a swing partway through the film to follow Gru’s daughter on a boy crush, it feels like the scriptwriters lost their way.

And while it’s clear “Despicable Me 2″ doesn’t have the heart of the original, it should be acknowledged that its messages are still positive, even surprisingly values-affirming.

The film, for example, has as few heart-warming moments when it become clear Gru’s daughters miss having a mommy. Hollywood and TV are usually far too politically correct to hint at the benefit of a two-parent home (unless those parents are homosexual, of course), but “Despicable Me 2″ doesn’t shy away.

The film lands another positive note late in the film with the pivotal line, “Nobody messes with my family.”

It’s a surprise to hear who says it, so I won’t spoil it.

Suffice it to say, “Despicable Me 2″ is a fairly positive film with a handful of laugh-out-loud moments. Not as good as the original, it’s still a whale of a lot better than its competition in theaters this weekend.

The film’s sexual content, however, is a little thicker than the first time around, as romantic storylines and the comical minions sometimes pick up a few butt, boob and otherwise bawdy jokes. I don’t think it will offend most parents, but those sensitive to it will notice.

There’s a significant amount of cartoon and slapstick violence in the movie, though it’s rarely connected to real-life events (one scene, for example, depicts massive, helicopter-mounted Gatling guns that shoot . jelly). Still, the “karate” moves and the minions’ frequent punching and slapping may inspire some younger copycats in the audience.

There is no significant religious or occult content in “Despicable Me 2.”

Drudge Report - This stunning shot was captured by one of the Expedition 36 crew members aboard the International Space Station. The picture shows of large mass of storm clouds over the Atlantic Ocean near Brazil and the Equator.

While the merits of building a fence along the USA’s southern border are debated in Congress, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says his nation’s new border fence is working very well, thank you.

In comments spoken Sunday and reported in the Times of Israel, Netanyahu claimed Israel’s new security fence along the Israel-Egypt border has not only stemmed the tide of illegal immigration to Israel, but has also protected the Jewish state from terrorists operating in the Sinai Peninsula.

Every day that passes “underscores how correct and how important the decision was to build the fence in the south,” the prime minister said. “You must remember that this fence is equipped with very advanced means . to protect the State of Israel against the double threat of illegal migration and terrorism from Sinai.”

“In practice, nobody has entered and the few who have arrived did not reach Israel’s cities,” he continued. “The fence has completely stopped illegal migration to Israel, but it also has an additional function - namely counterterrorism.”

The Times of Israel reports the border fence, which has taken years to construct and is still not finished, carries an estimated cost of $377 million. It was originally planned merely as a barrier to keep out migrants, but was upgraded to include motion sensors, cameras and heightened security after multiple border incidents in the wake of the 2011 Egyptian revolution, which resulted in a drastic decline in law and order in the Sinai.

In the U.S., meanwhile, lawmakers over the years have approved various southern border fence measures, but then revoked those same laws and then negotiated just how many miles worth of fence to actually build or not build - all leading to the current status of a piecemeal fence that simply funnels illegal immigrants from one border crossing to another and has left proponents on both sides of the fence debate dissatisfied.

Have you ever wished that errant journalists could get their noses rubbed in their own absurdities and outright falsehoods like puppy dogs who make a mess? Well, if you had been watching Meet The Press today then you would have seen Congressman Raul Labrador of Idaho do just that to the New York Times house "conservative" David Brooks who was slapped down not once but twice.

As you can see in this video and below the fold, Brooks didn't learn his lesson after being slapped down by Labrador for uttering absurdities about the Senate immigration bill. Labrador was forced to perform an encore performance after Brooks flat out uttered a falsehood. First we see Brooks describe how wonderful he thought the Senate immigration bill was:

Drudge Report - This is the moment the world's largest private yacht took to the North Sea. Azzam, which was built by German firm Lurssen, is a ?400million floating palace believed to be owned by a Middle-Eastern billionaire, which has knocked Roman Abramovich off the top spot.

Lucianne.com - Chicago Tribune, by Rosemary Regina Sobol Posted By: JoniTx- Sun, 07 21 2013 11:21:08 GMT As real estate broker Gary Dailey made his way through the throngs of people gathered on the Gold Coast lakefront Thursday night to enjoy the fireworks, what was initially all about families, children and the Fourth of July changed into something else. Dailey, 51, on his way to meet his girlfriend near a "quiet crowd" of children and adults, was confronted with something less quiet - a large, noisy group of individuals crowded into the center of a tunnel that led under Lake Shore Drive near Division Street. "They were screaming and yelling and scaring everybody,"

After Andy Murray became the first British man to win Wimbledon in 77 years, the New York Times mistakenly wrote that Murray was from England. Murray is in fact from Scotland, which makes up Great Britain along with England and Wales.

Scotland native Andy Murray defeated Novak Djokovic 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 to win the 2013 Wimbledon title. In two years, he ended two British droughts at Wimbledon. Last year he made history as the first British male to reach the Wimbledon final since Henry “Bunny” Austin in 1938 and now he is the first British man to win Wimbledon since Fred Perry in 1936.

As Twitchy pointed out, the New York Times' original headline was, "After 77 Years, Murray and England Rule":

Drudge Report - Venezuelan officials say they have not heard from Edward Snowden since the country offered the professed NSA leaker asylum, but would wait until Monday to hear if he would take up the offer. “There has not been any type of communication,'' Foreign Minster Elias Jaua …

Drudge Report - On "Good Morning America" Saturday I drew a legal conclusion that would have even surprised the Dan Abrams who covered the George Zimmerman case leading up to, and shortly after, his arrest. Now that the prosecution's case against Zimmerman is in, as a legal matter, I just don't see how a jury convicts him of Second Degree Murder or even Manslaughter in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin.

Drudge Report - A hospital spokesman says Teresa Heinz Kerry, the wife of Secretary of State John Kerry, has been hospitalized in critical but stable condition in a Nantucket hospital. Hospital spokesman Noah Brown said Heinz Kerry was admitted into the emergency room of Nantucket Cottage Hospital at about 3:30 p.m. Sunday. He says Heinz Kerry came to the facility...

(FLORIDA TODAY) “This is the norm in our world’s culture and there’s a need for security wherever we go nowadays,” said Gilchriest, who oversees security efforts at Freedom Christian and also is the CEO of Opaque Security, an international company that trains churches and synagogues to protect congregations. “We need to be prepared.”

It is an increasingly common sentiment in churches, synagogues and mosques nationwide as the number of deadly episodes at sanctuaries has soared over the last decade, and mass shootings at elementary schools, malls and movie theaters have left Americans feeling like it could happen anywhere.

Just last month, the federal government stepped in with a first-ever report outlining security recommendations for houses of worship. The 38-page plan, released just days after a man was shot and wounded during a Catholic Mass in Salt Lake City, advises congregations to plan for potential emergencies, including what police call random “active shooter” situations. Among the advice offered by the federal government: run, hide or, as a last resort, fight.